This Means War
by PokeshippingUnknown
Summary: What would happen if Team Rocket wasn't... Team Rocket? What if they were stronger, more intelligent, fugitives? When Ash finds out about the sick truth of Team Rocket, he gathers his friends -old and new- and starts an alliance. New feelings arise, causing more and more problems as he faces the new and improved Team Rocket. Pokeshipping! Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN POKEMON!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Okay… So this is my first AMAZING story I've ever made. And I've moved on to FanFic. net. So I hope you like it. And PLEASE… R&R~**

This Means War

Sometimes, life turns for the worst. It happens A LOT. Even though you could be having the best day ever, in the blink of an eye, something will try and ruin that. In Ash's eyes, that trouble is Team Rocket.  
Team Rocket it a stupid trio of retards who try to ruin his day. Even though they never succeed, it annoyed Ash at the fact that they have to deal with those three. I mean seriously, who would want to deal with them?  
But some things indeed DO change…  
_

**3:52 PM - Outskirts of Pallet - Ash, Iris, and Cilan**

"Are we almost there yet?" The purple haired girl moaned followed by another moan by her Axew.  
"Geez, Iris. Just be patient, will yuh?" Ash smirked at her with his usual boyish smile  
"Yeah… Says the one who yells out 'when is the food going to be done?'."  
"Okay, guys. That's enough for one day…" Cilan declared  
"Yeah, IRIS." Ash shot back at her.  
"Oh shut up, Ash."

After a few more minutes of arguing, they found themselves at the big sign that says, 'Welcome to Kanto'.  
They had all noticed that it had a few bullet holes in it, some burnt edges, making some rusted pieces slowly fall off.  
Knowing how clueless Ash is, you'd know he wouldn't notice. Or did he?  
Ash -now a 17 year old- had kept some things to himself. Especially the things that bothered him. This was one of the things that bothered him. _Hmm… What ghetto people turned up here?_

Ash -happy as could be- dashed down the hill that they were on, trying his hardest to see the town that was ahead of him. Spreading out his arms, he yelled, "Guys, welcome to my home!"  
His once great smile that Iris couldn't help but to love turned into a confused expression.  
Where's the town? he questioned himself  
"What's wrong?" Iris frowned, now noticing his big smile had disappeared.  
"Well, the main town used to be here…" he mumbled, "Where is it?"  
"Well don't ask us! Maybe they moved the town over the next mountain." Iris unintelligently said.  
"Maybe." Ash blank-mindedly murmured.

Ash smudged and walked down the path, passing many pieces of wood and stone. They were all scattered around the floor. _What?_ Ash was trying his hardest not to pay attention to it. On the other hand, Iris and Cilan began to wonder why Kanto looked like a graveyard.  
As they began trailing back up another hill, Cilan glanced at the enthusiastic Ash Ketchum that had been waiting a long time to go back to his town. He had been talking about it for the whole time he had been in Unova. He talked about how nice and calm it was, not to mention he lived near the famous Professor Oak.  
_I have that connoisseur feeling that he isn't going to be as excited when he finally gets there._ Cilan said to himself, letting a sweat drop from his head.  
Iris then noticed the embarrassed smile on his face and walked next to him.  
"What'cha thinking about?" Iris asked with a kiddy smile.  
"I just realized how happy Ash is."  
"Well why wouldn't he? He's home!" She shouted, earning a 'shoosh!' from Cilan.  
"Simply because his mom. When he gets home, his mom is going to embarrass him like there's no tomorrow." He quietly laughed, followed by a giggle by Iris.  
"That's true…"  
_

**4:10 PM - Cerulean Gym - Misty and Tracey**

Misty had been working on the next play for the gym. As usual, it starred Misty as the mermaid. Tracey had done a lot of plays with her, which made it really awkward for them, but it never changed their friendship.  
She started looking trough her bag for a note pad, still trying to keep the ideas in her head.

_The summary should be about a singer singing at a sea shore when a mermaid catches his beautiful voice. And soon-_

She grabbed out what she thought was a notebook. She read the front cover and stared at it for awhile. Being the person that she is, she held back her instincts to open it. It was a photo book. All her memories were in there. From back in the days. All her precious memories were in there; pictures of her younger days, of her parents, and that one person she could never get out of her head even if her life depended on it. Ash.  
No matter how many times she tried, she couldn't get him out of her head. She knew everything about him; his life, his personality, his face, his sweet auburn eyes, his voice…  
He was everything she wanted. Even though he was annoying, kiddy, stupid, and oblivious to love. Hell, he was oblivious to everything!  
But he is also loyal, courageous, and loving. He cares about his friends and never gives up. He has courtesy, integrity, perseverance, indomitable spirit, and self control. Victory was always his goal.  
He was also really cute. Not like handsome cute, but that boyish kind of cute. He had those big auburn eyes, which Misty had always admired, that soft messy raven black hair, and his signature hat.  
His hat with the weird check mark on it, she always admired that hat…  
Misty couldn't help but look at her old companion's hat which sat on her night stand. Ash gave it to her when she left to become the Cerulean Gym Leader. She picked it up and placed it on her head. Looking in the mirror, she couldn't help but smile.  
_Why him?_  
She slipped off the hat and fell onto her bed. And kept thinking, but got cut off by an unexpected visitor.  
"Come in…" She mumbled.  
"Hey." Tracey, the assistant of Professor Oak, walked in with a small smile.  
"Hey…"  
"Is there something wrong?"  
"No, just thinking about the past"  
"Oh, so it's Ash you're thinking about?" he asked with a smirk.  
"N-No! S-Shut up, Tracey!" She hissed, causing Tracey to step back in fear.  
"Hey! Don't judge me for guessing right!" He laughed, but still backing away in fear.  
"I'm not judging you! I'M THREATENING YOU." She growled  
Knowing not to mess with Misty, Tracey backed off.

Misty knew he was right. She couldn't help but wonder what he was doing. Anything and everything she thought of related to Ash. Whether it was about the Gym, or about a guy that asked her out (Which she rejected), it always went back to Ash. Tracey made fun of her sometimes knowing that she'd think about him ALL THE TIME. Which was true, of course. But seriously, keep your thoughts to yourself.  
_Why can't I like other guys? Why do I have to like HIM? Why him out of all people? Ugh… So many questions._  
But he'll never come back… Hell, he doesn't even call anymore. I should just give up…  
She thought this all the time. So she'd store him in the back of her memories… For now…  
She was obsessed with Ash. Really obsessed. And she needed him out of her mind. Just for once.  
Just… for…  
Once.  
_

**4:35 PM - Pallet Town - Ash, Iris, and Cilan**

Ash was getting a little confused. Why did Pallet look so deserted?  
They walked a little longer until Ash got irritated.  
"What the hell!? Where's Pallet?!" Ash yelled in frustration.  
"Ash! Don't use that language! We're probably just on the wrong mountain." Iris said.  
"No. This is the right place. Didn't you see the 'Welcome to Pallet' sign?" He protested

Iris bit her lip. For once, Ash had a point. She just nodded and shut up before he could say anything else intelligent.  
Ash was getting mad and nervous at the same time. He started sprinting. Past the trees, past the old abandoned barns and looked at the horror as he saw crushed houses, abandoned stores, and nothing but broken glass and wood everywhere. All the houses, shops, and even the trees were all destroyed. He clenched his fist and closed his eyes shut tight.  
_No… What happened here? Please… No._ Screamed the distressed Ash as he ran through the streets of the ruins of Pallet.  
"Ash, is this… Pallet?" Iris asked  
"It used to be…" The shaken boy said, not turning around to show his face.  
"Ash…" Cilan mumbled as he reached to put his hand on Ash's shoulder. Ash jerked away and started run down the path that led to his mom's house.  
"Where are you going?!" Iris shouted  
"My mom lives on the outskirts of Pallet. Hopefully this didn't happen over there…" He yelled back in response.

He kept running; not stopping._ Please… Don't…_ He yelled in his mind.  
As he saw his mother's house in the distance, he noticed that it looked… Different.  
He felt tears coming up to his eyes. He couldn't help but to shout…  
"MOM! NO!" He shouted.  
"Ash! Wait up! Please!" Iris yelled back.

He ran up to the broken house that was once his mother's. His eyes widen and felt tears creep up to his eyes. He fell to his knees and kept staring. Tears fell from his eyes and he didn't hesitate to run up to the ruins of his once called house.  
There was nothing there. Nothing but a bunch of wood and broken… everything.

"No… No! NO!" He screamed as he rummaged through everything, suffering cuts from all the broken glass.  
"Ash, stop. You might get hurt." Cilan informed  
"Do you really think I care about that?" Ash said with his tear-filled eyes, "My mom… She could be anywhere…"  
He rummaged through it some more till he found his moms reddish-brown head of hair. He closed his eyes shut and let out a cry. He pulled her out of the ruins and hugged her bare lifeless body. He wanted revenge for whoever did this.  
"Whoever did this is dead." He growled through the tears.  
"Ash…" Iris mumbled  
"No. Whoever did this is DEAD. But I need to make sure someone else is okay before I do anything else."  
"And who would that be?" Cilan asked  
"Guys, we're going to Cerulean City…"

**A/N: Okay… This is a stupid beginning, but I swear, it'll get better. MORE CHARACTERS COMING IN THE NEXT CHAPTER!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Okay… I guess I'm REALLY excited to make this story because I can't stop thinking about it. This is probably the most dramatic series I've ever made. And no, I would NEVER discontinue it. That would be cheesed up if I did that to you guys… If there… ARE any people reading this. ANYWAYS, just remember to R&R and spread the word about the new author in town! I really am enthusiastic about this whole series. And I honestly have gotten ahead of myself, so I'm basically just making it up as I write. That's how far ahead I am from myself. **

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN POKEMON OR ANY CHARACTERS IN THIS SERIES. I ONLY OWN THE STORY PLOT. **

This Means War

Chapter 2: Fighting The Tears

**2:37 AM - Cerulean Gym - Misty**

She settled in her bed, let her orange hair down from her ponytail, and just laid there. Misty couldn't help but to think about him at night. What are you suppose to do if you can't sleep? Turn off your mind? No, that's not possible. Of course you think before going to bed. You even think while you're sleeping. That's how dreams are formed… As a 17 (going on 18) year old girl, she could control her thoughts. Instead of Misty thinking about her long lost companion, she thought about the day.

_Well, I got a letter from the Gym Leader Association thingy about me being one of the top Gym Leaders. That's good. I went over ideas about the play. Ugh, and Gary… He came by to be oh-so-_ _generous to me as he gave me some money to renovate the Gym, IF I'd give him a "thank you kiss". That man-whore. Why is he constantly trying to bribe me for a kiss?_

_Moving on… and then I went for a swim in that lake where Ash and I- … UGH! Cut it out, Misty! Stop thinking about that dense idiot! _

… _Ugh… Okay! Then I went to the store and bought some Pokemon food, fruit, and water for the gym. Oh, I forgot! I need to get that new filter for the tank. What was it called again? Uh… Eh, I'll remind myself later…_

_Then I got home after that and looked through my bag and… Found a picture of Brock,…Ash, and I. _

Just as she suspected, everything she thought would lead back to Ash. She hated that. Misty wanted to move on, but for some odd reason, she just couldn't. She tried everything she could, whether it was going to a spa or even going out with a guy, she couldn't sweep him out of her memories. She could admit, sometimes it was nice to think about him. When she was sad, she'd think about how funny and oblivious he was. She'd laugh at that thought. Or if she has too much work to do, and she's ready to give up, she'd think of his ability to never give up, but keep his cool at the same time. His self control…

But it's definitely not a good thing to think about when you're on a date. When Misty went out with this one boy, she almost called him Ash! Extremely embarrassed by this, she walked out of the relationship knowing that it wont be the first time she'd accidentally call him Ash if she had gone further with him. She did other similar things when mingling until she got sick of it and stopped looking for someone to help her get over him.

She had always wondered if he had ever found a girl to settle down with. She hasn't found out about any girls since he left for Sinnoh. She had only known about May. No one else. Has he stopped traveling with girls? More importantly, has he stopped traveling with Brock? Misty would have been pissed if he stopped traveling with Brock. But in all seriousness, she couldn't help but worry about the fact that he could've moved on with another girl. _Is that why he's not talking to me?_ Or maybe that he died without anyone knowing. That was one of her weirdest thoughts… But it could happen.

Sitting there thinking about the person that once belonged to her, she could hear a faint noise coming from outside the window. It sounded… Unnatural. Like a faint 'boom' sound. The sound that you hear when you have earphones blasting at full capacity in your ear, and the bass is bumping inside of your ears. That's what it sounded like. It could've been two Pokemon fighting, and one hit something really hard, but it didn't seem right.

'_boom!'_

There it was again. A little louder this time. Enough to scare Misty. She slowly lifted her head from her pillow, followed by her whole body swaying up into a sitting position. She stood up and slowly walked over to the window. Nothing there. What's going on? 'boom!' AGAIN! Even louder than the second one. Being scared, she had just remembered, she was all alone.

_I'm alone…_

**2:41 AM - Somewhere in Cerulean City - Ash, Iris, and Cilan**

Ash was scared out of his mind. _What were those booms? _He was being a lot more cautious now that he found his whole town, including his own mother… dead. He felt his heart fly out of his chest as he heard the first 'boom' sound. The second time, he started to look around nervously, trying to figure out which way they were coming from. Oh, but the third time, he started freaking out. _Maybe the booms are what caused Pallet to look the way it does… _

He started walking down the paths, a little faster than usual, hoping not to hear a forth 'boom'. His breathing increased and tiny salt water globules started to make it's way down Ash's face. The thought of seeing his Best Friend dead is enough to make him cry. Being the way he is, Iris and Cilan weren't able to see, but Iris knew by the way he was rubbing his eyes.

"Ash… I know you're hurt by this; I'm shocked myself." Iris mumbled; putting her hand on his shaking shoulders.

"No. You don't understand what Pallet meant to me. What my MOM… meant to me." He forced out; not letting another tear come out.

"I'm sorry…" She frowned at the thought of Ash being depressed.

"It's okay, Iris. But I just want to get off of the streets before I hear another boom."

"Yeah, I feel yuh." She quietly looked around, "It's freaking me out."

"Yeah," Was all he could mumble before lifting up his head to see a faint, yet familiar building. It looked like a dome. The Cerulean Gym.

"Finally," He sighed and tried to glance up at his sleeping yellow mouse on the top of his hat. He smiled at the fact that his Pokemon would now be safe.

He always believes that a Pokemon's life is far more important than your own. Some don't agree, but the ones that are Master's tend to think alike.

"Is that the place you were talking about?" Cilan asked in happiness, knowing that he'll soon be out of the black night of Cerulean.

"Yeah." He sadly smiled.

He hadn't seen this girl in years, and yet, he's asking for her help. Although this is also about her safety, she might not even listen to him. He knew her all too well, even if it had been years. The only thing he couldn't remember was how many years it has been. Ash could imagine her now; her fiery red hair, perfectly shaped face, her amazing oceanic blue eyes… Damn, there was to much to think of when you mention her name. She was a mixture of emotions. Although her main emotion was anger, she also had that sweet caring side to her that made Ash squirm. The humor that was rather dull, but made him want to laugh anyways. That feeling that he had around her was constant, consistent, and persistent. Never ending. Even when she was yelling at him, he couldn't help but smile at her. But then she left. He hasn't really felt the same ever since.

'_BOOM!'_

"Okay, I'm going." Ash's shaky voice murmured before he started to sprint.

**2:47 AM - Cerulean Gym - Misty**

_Hopefully TV will get my mind off of that noise outside. _She said to herself as she watched the recording of yesterday's news.

"_This is Ms. Hinako reporting live from Pallet Town, Kanto where a horrific scene has taken place. As you can see from these disturbing pictures, a group of fugitives terrorized the whole town of Pallet, crushing houses, destroying precious memories, and killing most of these innocent people. Officers say that they had bombed half of the city, leaving dozens dead."_

As the news reporter kept talking, Misty sat in shock, thinking about Ms. Ketchum. _Is she okay?_

She stared at the TV, blank-mindedly, just looking at all the tragic pictures of demolished houses and mini-marts. The pictures kept passing as the lady kept talking. One picture caught her eye. Was is Ms. Ketchum's house? It certainly looked like it. She wasn't sure… All that showed in the picture was basically… half of a house. Then she thought of those noises outside. Were those boom sounds… the sounds of bombs?

_What kind of person would do this? I really hope Delia is okay…_

'_KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!' _

Misty jumped up in fear. Who would be knocking on the door this late? She already had been hearing faint boom sounds in her bedroom, now someone's knocking at the door._ What the hell!? Am I hearing things, or something? _

'_KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!'_

_Again!? Okay… Maybe I'm not hearing things. But still, who would be knocking?_

She stood from her seat at the couch and slowly walked up to the door. She looked out the window to only see three black shadows. Hell no she wasn't going to answer it. Until she heard a familiar squeak outside…

"Pika!" A loud squeak came from outside, causing Misty to quickly realize who or what was knocking. It was a Pikachu!

But wait… Doesn't Ash have a Pikachu? She inhaled slowly, trying to figure out what a Pikachu would want from her unless it was… him.

"Misty, please! Let us in!" Yelled a boy that sounded strikingly familiar.

_Oh my God… It is…_ Her breathing increased and she felt nauseous. Trying her hardest to calm down, she slowly unlocked the door and creaked it open only about an inch. She saw the faint shadow of raven-haired boy and his Pikachu. As he stepped into the light of the porch, she saw the new features of him that he hadn't had when he was younger. He had a more… built body. He was wearing a blue short sleeve jacket, and black baggy pants. Although his hair had the same messy style it always had, it looked a little lighter in color than before. She was disappointed that she couldn't see his cute auburn eyes due to the darkness in the air, but she noticed they seemed… different.

There were two other people with him. One boy and one girl. _Where's Brock? _She asked; being a little disappointed in Ash for leaving yet another good friend behind. The boy had soft green hair that was combed neatly forward, making him look formal. He was wearing a gentleman's vest with brown formal pants. The girl had big purplish colored hair with village attire.

Although she hadn't noticed, she had been staring for a good 60 seconds.

"Misty?" Ash asked with a weak voice.

"… A-Ash…" Was all she could say before Pikachu leaped into her arms, embracing her with both joy and fear.

"Can we… you know… come in?" He asked with that weak smile he had been using all day to keep Iris and Cilan from worrying about him.

"Y-Yeah, of course." She said, still being embraced by Pikachu.

She opened the door and let everyone walk in. She noticed that everyone looked… frightened. Maybe it was because of those boom sounds that Misty was hearing. Or something else? Whatever it was, it shocked them real bad. She had noticed it in Ash more than anyone else. His shoulders were drooping, his hands were curled into fists, and his hat was trying it's best to cover his eyes. What was wrong? Was it about that news report?

Ash didn't hesitate and plopped on the couch, still hiding his eyes from any contact with Misty's turquoise eyes. He grinded his teeth in stress and scooted down into a laying position on the couch. He hadn't even seen Misty's face yet, but he honestly didn't want to. He was afraid of her yelling at him for… God knows what. Possibly…everything. Ash hadn't agreed with her half the time, but what he did agree with her on, is that they shouldn't even have separated. Misty wanted to stay with him. And so did he. Awhile later, they had a quick little reunion followed by another one about two months later. But since all that, they haven't seen or contacted each other since. He was also mad for her not answering ANY of his calls or letters. He had tried and tried for so long, but every time he had tried, she would never answer. He had felt really bad about having no contact with her, even though she was the one that wasn't answering the calls. But being the person that he is, he tried not to pay attention to things that were irrelevant to Pokemon. She was Ash's BEST FRIEND. If Ash saw how much she wanted to see him, he would fly all the way back to Kanto to make her happy. And once that happens, he would want to stay… with her. She was all too much for him to handle…

Misty watched as Ash's friends stared at him with concern. She couldn't help but to sit next to where Ash was laying.

She guessed Ash didn't want to talk since he scooted away from her. Even though she really wasn't in the mood to talk either, she was hurt by him. After years of not seeing each other, he just expects her to open her home to him so he can crash on the couch and not talk to anyone? But Misty couldn't argue now, he was depressed in some way. She was determined to find out. Trying to give Ash his space, she sat back and put her attention on his friends.

"Hi, my name's Misty." She smiled faintly.

"Hello, I'm Cilan and this is Iris." He gave the same smile back and pointed to Iris.

"Is there any reason why Ash would bring you here? Despite the fact that he hasn't seen me in FOUR years." She darted her eyes to Ash, who was still curled up on the couch next to her.

"Actually, do you know what's going on-" Iris questioned before getting cut by Ash as he shot up from his position and hit Iris on the shoulder.

"With those boom sounds?" Ash quickly changed the subject about his once called hometown.

"Oh… that. That is what's keeping me awake. You guys are lucky I was awake when you knocked at the door. I would have been pissed if you woke me up." She quietly giggled, trying to keep the conversation lively.

"Thanks for pointing out the obvious, Misty." Ash mildly spoke.

"Shut up, Ash." Misty giggled louder, as she rolled her eyes. _Same old Ash…_

She noticed how dirty Ash looked. She wasn't going to let a hobo into her home/Gym.

"Ash, do you want to take a shower? You look dirty." She said.

"Yeah… Sure."

Misty stood up and led him to the bathroom, where she supplied him with a towel and some gym shorts that used to belong to Gary before he left them at the Gym and COMPLETELY forgot about them. She walked back down the stairs and sat next to Iris and Cilan.

"So… You live at the Gym?" Iris questioned, looking at her surroundings.

"Yes. I'm currently the Gym Leader at the Gym until my sisters finally decide to take over. But right now they're out of town, so I'm here alone."

"Let me ask you a question… Is it always this creepy here at night?" Cilan asked.

"Creepy? No… It's usually really pretty at night." Misty hesitantly answered, knowing that there had been a lot of strange things going on in the city, "But maybe it's just because it's been a little foggy around here lately." She lied.

"Anyways, how does Ash know you? Did he battle you?" Iris quickly changed the subject.

"Oh… That story again?" Misty sighed, "Well, no. Let's just say it was a VERY long story and we ended up becoming really close friends." She smiled, hoping that they would take that as an answer.

"But I think we have time to hear the story." Iris smiled.

"Ugh… Okay. So it was… Around September. I was fishing in a lake near here, when I felt a tug on my line. It was a big fish, I could tell by the way it was tugging at the line. So I finally yanked it up and realized… It was a boy!… So I looked at him and his Pikachu and got mad because I had really thought I caught a big fish. And as he woke up, I smacked the crap out of him and told him where he can heal his Pokemon. And he stole my bike and left!" She laughed at the memories.

"Wow. Ash must've been really clumsy to fall into a lake." Cilan chuckled.

"Well… Not quite. He said there were a bunch of bird Pokemon chasing him because he 'accidentally' hit one of them, and that they looked pretty blood-thirsty." She let sweat drop from her head, "And he ended destroying my bike in the process. Anyways… After all that happened, I was expecting him to pay for my bike, but as I started to follow him around, it didn't really matter about the bike at all. In fact, I got it fixed before I left. And we ended up becoming Best Friends." She smiled.

"Then why didn't we ever hear about you?" Iris asked, seeming confused.

"I guess Ash didn't really want to talk to me anymore since we lost contact. I kept trying to reach him, but we just… lost each other." Misty frowned.

"Oh…" Iris couldn't say anything else.

"So do you know what's going on with-" Cilan was cut off by Iris. She knew that if Cilan told her about Pallet and the fugitives, Ash would get mad. So she quickly changed the subject.

"THE BOOMS!" She finished his sentence.

"Huh?" Misty looked confused.

"Uh… the booms! Those booms that have been creeping all of us out." Iris blurted out; trying not to babble.

"Oh, no I don't. They've been scaring the heck out of me though, and I think you could all agree." Misty declared, letting everyone nod in agreement.

Being Misty, she knew that they were hiding something from her. She wasn't stupid; not like Ash. But to satisfy them, she kept it a secret. You see, Misty knows when to say and when not to say certain things. In a time like this, she didn't want any tears or confessions due to all of the tension and creepiness that was going on. There were unexplained booms coming from… God knows where, Ash isn't himself, he showed up at 3:00 o'clock in the morning, and to top it off, he left her with his friends that she barely knows at all.

_Well this night is going to be interesting…_

**3:02 AM - Cerulean Gym - Ash **

Everything had come so quickly. It's like something came and smacked him in the face. HARD. He hadn't expected his own hometown… his own mother… to be gone. Everything… GONE. His childhood memories were all destroyed in that terrorization. He couldn't help but to sigh at the thought of his only family member dead. Ash had never known about his dad, and his mom mentioned to him about his grandfather -but again- he never had known about him either.

He sat on the bed and dried his hair with his towel, thinking about what he was going to say to Misty. Ever since they had separated, it had gotten more and more awkward to talk to her. God knows how distant we are from each other now.

'_BOOM!' _

"Wha!?" He yelled as he slipped and fell on the cold wooden floor.

Another boom? This was really starting to worry him. It felt like all the sounds were getting closer and closer to the Gym, even though they were no where to be found. Ash's instincts told him to dart to the window to try and find anything that could be causing those unexplained noises -but again- nothing.

"Ash?" A voice yelled from downstairs.

"Y-Yeah?!" He said, regaining his balance as he swung around to face the door.

"Was that banging sound you?" Iris shouted from downstairs.

"No…" He whispered to himself, but instead, he lied, "Yeah. I fell… out of the shower."

"Oh… Okay, well are you okay?"

"Y…Yeah!" He felt bad about lying, but he didn't want to freak out anyone, especially Misty…

He quickly slipped on his black tee-shirt and raced down the stares. He stopped running at the last few steps, brushed the loose hair out of his face, and slowly walked in - trying to look casual. He didn't have his hat on, so he couldn't hide his exhausted eyes.

_Boy… this is going to be a LONG night…_

**3:09 AM - Cerulean Gym - Ash, Misty, Iris, and Cilan**

She had never seen Ash like this. He was so… tired; you could see written all over his face. His lips couldn't form a smile, he could only form the fake little one he had been giving everyone all day. His voice was faint and quiet when he'd talk. Definitely not what his original annoying voice sounded like. And his eyes. Oh, his eyes, they looked like they had gotten all the color sucked from them. It's not that they were colorless, but they were grayish brown. They looked… dead. Like all the energy just got sucked out of him. They were bloodshot. Cold. All she could look at were his eyes.

Misty looked down at the hardwood floor, trying not to look up at his eyes again. They were too painful for her to handle.

She was hurt by the fact that her Best Friend -the one that she loves- is looking like a abused martyr.

Desperate to comfort her companion, she sits closer to him and gives him a look.

"Uh, hi." He said with a weird look.

She sighed in frustration and tried to come up with a plan to get him to confess what's wrong. Pondering in her mind, she sat back and gave the most depressed look that could fool even the wisest man. Ash looked at her sad expression and gave her a worried look.

"Hey, you okay?" He asked

"Huh? Oh, yeah I'm fi-" She stopped in the middle of her sentence, realizing what she was doing.

"Yeah… I'm fine, I guess." She substituted the original answer for this one. _That would do…_

"Eh, I don't believe that. C'mon, tell me." He looked at me, still not giving an encouraging smile.

She tried to fake some tears and ran up to her room. She left the door unlocked to see if Ash would walk in, but surprisingly, he didn't. He stood in front of the door and asked -like a gentleman- to come in. That shocked her for some odd reason. Ash usually treats his lady friends like boys. And this time, he was treating them like ladies. Maybe he has changed…

"Mist, please let me in." He desperately tried his best to convince her to open the door.

Little miss deceiver opened the door and let him walk inside. She then shut the door and locked it, making sure he couldn't leave the room until he told her what was going on.

"Okay, NOW can you tell me what's wrong?" The confused and worried raven-haired boy asked.

"Only if you tell me what's wrong with you." She mumbled, trying to keep an acting face on.

"What? T-There's nothing wrong with me… Why would you think that?"

"Ash! You're not yourself! You're moping around, your eyes look dead, you look like a zombie… WHAT'S WRONG?" She said, actually fighting tears. She couldn't help but to cry over her friend suffering…

"Mist…" He murmured. His voice shook Misty inside out. It sounded so lost…

"Was it really that obvious?" He whispered and looked at the ground.

"Maybe not for your other friends, but I know you better than that."

He sighed, leaving Misty to a conclusion that something was definitely bothering him. He fell onto her bed and stared at the ceiling, thinking about what he was going to say to Misty. What COULD he tell her? That his mom died? That he was afraid to talk to her? Those were both very true, but there was something else… He couldn't remember. That was annoying him even more. _What do I say to her?! _Feeling desperate, he blurted out something that he shouldn't have said.

"YOU!" He blurted out. He quickly covered his mouth as soon as he realized what he had just said.

"W-What?" She gave him a sad and confused look.

He couldn't turn away from the subject. He had to say it. Now.

"Y-you… I've been trying to call you for so long! But you NEVER answer! And I send letters and do everything a possibly can to talk to you, and what do I get? NOTHING. Nothing at all!"

"Ash, I haven't seen any missed calls from you! Or letters!"

"Mist, I've been writing to you for the past six months." He stood his ground, "I finally stopped because I just thought you didn't want to talk to me anymore."

She sat there, silent. Trying to take in all the words he had just said. They had seemed… so sudden. And this was shocking to her, ESPECIALLY from Ash. Ash had always been the one to keep his feelings to himself, not say them out loud. He has changed… A LOT. He sat there, increasing his breathing as he saw the look on my face.

"I… I'm sorry, I just… didn't know what to say when you asked me what was wrong…" He mumbled.

"Oh, so that's not what's bothering you?" She smirked

"Dang it!" He yelled, face palming him self.

"Spill it, Ketchum."

"… My mother…" That was all he could say.

"Oh yeah, I heard about the bombing in Pallet. Is your mom okay?"

"She's gone…"

Misty sat there in disbelief. Did this really just happen? Did Ms. Ketchum die? Ash couldn't have been lying; he's talking about his mother. Why would he make this up? She leaned in and hugged him, comforting and caring for him. Ash hugged her back, taking all the comforting in. He couldn't help but to let out a few tears. Being the typical boy, he tried to keep Misty from seeing any, but Misty soon found out when she felt warm drops of salt water on her shoulder.

"It's okay, Ash. You can cry." Her soothing voice made him feel safer.

He soon found himself hugging her tighter. More tears came from his eyes and he practically fell on Misty. Misty -trying to hold Ash's weight- caressed his hair with one hand and rubbed small circles in his back with the other. Trying her best to not to cry. Like Ash, she didn't like crying in front of him.

"I've never felt so alone!" He cried out, pulling her even closer, leaving Misty's face a little red. She's never been this close to him before, and they were VERY close. "I feel like I have no one. Like my life is turning for the worst." He angrily shouted.

"Ash, you're not alone. You have your friends, Gary, Brock, Dawn, May, Drew, Paul, and more importantly, you have me."

"But I don't have any family anymore. I haven't seen my dad since I was seven, I have no idea who my grandfather is, and that's seriously the only people I know in my family besides my mother." He kept shouting, "My mother was the only person in my family. I wish I could've protected her…"

"We all are family! We've been Best Friends since we were ten, that has to mean something."

He sighed and let go of his embraced. Knowing that this was true, he chuckled, "Yeah… I can't deny that."

Knowing that she couldn't leave her friend till he was feeling himself again, she stayed with him for a little while longer, until she heard him yawn.

"Now I'm tired," Misty smiled at her broken friend, "You want to go to bed now?"

Ash sadly smiled and said, "Sure."


End file.
